Riad Laaroussa arranged for one of their regular drivers to pick us up at Fez airport. He was a real find! His name is Reda and we luckily were able to book him for the day to take us to Volubillis and Meknes. Having experienced four weeks on a bus with 20 or so people driving from one end of China to the other, Monty&Me were keen to travel at our own pace. You see something you like? You can stop and take your time rather than being given a specific and limited time frame because you have to keep to an itinerary and travel deadlines.
Reda was absolutely charming. His dark cocoa coloured eyes and flashing white smile were a perfect complement to his easy going personality. Nothing was too much trouble for him...he went along with our 'flow'.
Thought to be the most remote outpost of the Roman Empire, Volubillis is an ancient settlement dating back to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. The ruins are in the middle of the countryside. Well worth the time to drive there just to be able to walk under the towering arches, peer into the remains of Romans baths and marvel at the mosaics. We could have paid for one of the locals on sure to take us on a tour of the ruins but we were happy to wander at our own pace and soak up the history of it all. We met a couple from Scotland who were avid travellers and had visited this world heritage site before so it was fun to chat with them and share points of view.
After Volubillis we made a couple of stops (obligatory panoramic vantage points) before arriving at Meknes. Fascinating city. It was here we fell in love with kilim. This time we negotiated a price that included shipping it to Australia. Clever Monty&Me. Now all we have to do is hope that the kilim arrives home.
Note: Photos to be uploaded soon. Further details to be posted mid-November when access to the computer affords a speedy upload of images.
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